January

Yesterday, the 24th of January, was a rather shoddy day for many Directors at Walmart Labs. They had to spend the day laying off a couple hundred of the most productive, passionate, caring, and intelligent individuals I have had the privilege to work with. Oh, me too.

I woke up today quite excited. I’m not certain what is next yet, but I know it is going to be awesome. I am excited and optimistic about the future. I’ll be sharing more about what drives me over the next couple days.

For the moment I want to open my doors to you.

• if you were part of the chopping-of-heads—don’t hesitate to reach out.
• if you weren’t part of the chopping-of-heads—don’t hesitate to reach out.
• If you are hiring—don’t hesitate to reach out.
• If you want to talk about any challenges your team or organization is facing—don’t hesitate to reach out.

I’d be happy to hop on a call, chat, or email with you. If you’re in the Charlotte, NC area let’s drink coffee ☕️ together! My desire is to help you in any way I am able. Whether you need moral support, referrals, technical advice, or React.js or JavaScript training I have some availability for at least the next few weeks.

I am unbelievably proud of what my team has accomplished over the past 15 months. Watching each of them grow as team members, engineers, and individuals has been profoundly rewarding. Building a great product throughout it all wasn’t a bad means to the end. I am humbled and forever grateful to those who told me they’d follow me anywhere. Thank you for making me a better person. Depending upon where the next few weeks go I hope to provide you that opportunity.

In the words of Ellen DeGeneres—be kind to one another.

These words brought to you by Dustan Kasten. A friendly, bearded, husband, father, and user interface engineer living in Charlotte, NC. Considers himself quite partial to React.js these days. Find @iamdustan on Twitter